Thanksgiving sure gets the short end of the holiday rah-rah wishbone, right? Lots of fams look forward to and decorate for Halloween. So many fams get their houses all tricked out for the holidays (Christmas, Hanukkah, Kwanzaa, etc.). But shoot, where oh where is the hootin’ and hollering for Thanksgiving? Not a rhetorical question. I really don’t know. Gobbled up these yummy Thanksgiving books in anticipation of whatever feast you have coming on the fourth Thursday of the month!
For Littles
Ethan Long’s Fangsgiving is spot on! Talk about pin the tail on REAL LIFE! Vladimir has a crew of good friends and together they make their own Thanksgiving special. Until Vlad’s fam shows up and makes recipes how they like. Chaos ensues. Tell me this isn’t just about everyone’s family gathering at Thanksgiving, right?
I purchased this from Teachers Pay Teachers for an at-home activity to connect with the book. Take a peek!
Both Motor and Hope liked The 12 Days of Thanksgiving by Jenna Lettice. Just like the famous 12 Days of Christmas song, this book goes through the days and foods leading up to a family’s Thanksgiving celebration. The book includes diverse characters and the most delicious looking food. This book felt like a very real look into a holiday.
Oh my sweetness! My Family Celebrates Thanksgiving by Lisa Bullard is all about gratitude! What a great picture book to read to small peeps to help explain the reason for the holiday. I love this, and the whole Early Bird Stores by Learner. Not sponsored. Just callin’ out good set of books.
Duck and Hippo Give Thanks by Jonathan London is a sweet picture book that I implore you to get your turkey feathers on. Hippo has a plan. Duck is his willy-nilly best pal who shifts things a bit. They are a perfect pair to be sure. But things don’t go according to Hippo’s plan, but he’s sure grateful in the end. 🦃
Saddle right up to Around the Table That Granddad Built by Melanie Heuiser Hill. Diverse characters, different foods, everyone working together. No brainer. This is adorable for all kiddos and totally a staple for your seasonal home book collection.
Holy turkey leg. The illustrations in Thanksgiving is Here by Diane Goode speak for themselves. I’d buy this book if it just had gibberish written inside. But it doesn’t. It’s a sweet little book and definitely worth a read! Gobble this book up!
These illustrations always get me swooning! This whole series from Karma Wilson is just adorable and Bear Says Thanks doesn’t disappoint. Bear doesn’t have anything to bring to the soiree, but his forest friends are a-ok with it. Love!
Thankful by Eileen Spinelli is a joy! Books about gratitude are so necessary in my heart all year round, but especially now. Insert the Amazon and Target holiday catalogues and the zillions of commercials. Followed by the ‘I want, I want, I want’ comments requests demands. I really love the illustrations here…reminds me so much of Roald Dahl books!
Over the River & Through the Wood by Linda Ashman is especially poignant to our fam and for all you out there who have to travel to see your fams on this holiday. There is a lot of deep breathing and counting to three and lost items in hotels and whatnot for this holiday but it’s all SO, so worth it. Check out this book’s diversity, too. Gosh, I love this!
For all my tiny tots out there, this is for you! A board book with cutouts AND sparkle? Check baby check, baby, 1, 2, 3! Hooray for Thanksgiving by Roger Priddy is just a hug and kiss inside a board book. Add to cart!
Gracias Thanks by Pat Mora is another amazing book about gratitude but it also has a dual language component that I really love! I think Spanish is such an important language and books that include a non-English language are such a great discussion point in our house for diversity and I love the diversity in illustrations here. Total winner in my book. Ha, again with the puns! ✔
10 Fat Turkeys by Tony Johnston is just plain FUN! Such a cutesy counting book with joyful illustrations! Yes, please! I found this freebie counting activity on Teachers Pay Teachers that would make for a perf companion for little counters in your house!
Emerging Readers
The cover alone got me. How could it not? These Nancy Drew Clue Books could actually be manuals on how to clean grout and other heinous cleaning chores I hate and I’d STILL love them because of these illustrations! All in. The Turkey Trot Plot by Carolyn Keene is pint-sized mystery adorable-ness and it has just the right amount of whodunit. Snap this up!
Judy Moody and Stink, you have my heart! The Wishbone Wish by Megan McDonald is a stuffing joy (cannot. stop. the. puns.). In fact, this whole Stink Moody series, Judy Moody & Friends series and the Judy Moody & Stink series are just pure delights. The page thickness is uh-mazing, there are pics on almost every. single. page (win!) and the plot moves along quickly enough to keep squirrel-y attention spans. And unlike other novel series where the sibs get along oh-so-perfectly, Megan McDonald writes this more in line with what happens in my house. 😉
Ok, where oh where are the YA and adult books that center around Thanksgiving? And I don’t mean the cookbooks and how-to-host-like-a-pro options. Send ideas my way!
There is certainly a lot to know about this issue. I love all of the points you have made. Faydra Dukey O’Hara